3M vinyl wrap is a cheaper and safer option than painting that you can still do yourself.
It is much easier to work with than many might expect, plus you could go with something a little different. For example,
I have just wrapped mine in the carbon effect vinyl and I think it has come out really well.
If the stone chips are really bad, the vinyl will follow them and still show so you may still need to do a bit of smoothing, you just wouldn't need to worry about achieving a good paint and lacquer finish.